1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to signage, and in particular to dual purpose signage, especially designed for use in retail outlets to advertise and warn of hazardous conditions.
2. Discussion of the Prior Art
In retail outlets, such as department stores, grocery stores, drug stores and hardware stores, goods for purchase are displayed on racks and shelves, and items requiring cold storage are displayed in coolers and freezers. One common way to provide customers information about the goods being sold is to post signs on or near the displays, for example, the signs can include promotional materials about the price of the goods being sold. U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,233,733; 5,617,661; and 5,722,623 disclose various signs for use in retail stores.
One common problem, particularly apparent in grocery stores, is that hazardous conditions occur from goods falling from the display devices. One common hazard is a wet floor formed by a broken or spilled liquid container. Ordinarily, the hazard remains until a store clerk is notified and the floor is dried. This can take several minutes or more depending on the location, time of day and availability of clean-up personnel. Ideally, customers should be warned immediately of the hazard to reduce the chance of injury and limit the store owner's exposure to liability. However, in this common scenario, the customers are provided no warning of the hazard until the clerk sets up a free-standing warning device near the hazard. Such warning devices are ordinarily kept in a closet or other area of the building remote from where the goods are displayed, which prevents rapid notification of the hazard.
An improved technique is disclosed by U.S. Pat. No. 6,014,828, the contents of which are hereby incorporated by reference as though fully set forth herein. This patent discloses a dual-purpose sign adapted to be mounted to display shelving in retail stores. The sign has a vertical housing that defines a pocket concealing a pivotal arm with warning indicia. The opposite faces of the housing provide display surfaces for advertising materials. When vertical, the warning arm is completely concealed within the housing such that the sign displays only the advertisement. When a hazardous condition is present, the arm can be pulled outward and swung downwardly by gravity to a horizontal position in which the warning indicia are revealed. This sign thus provides a warning sign that is readily available in the event of a hazardous condition, but concealed during normal conditions. While this sign provides the stated improvements, it is designed for attachment to horizontal shelving making it less suited for attaching to walls and doors, and it extends principally perpendicularly to the mounting surface to display the advertisements, such that, for example, it is susceptible to being struck (and possibly damaged or knocked down) by customers passing through a store aisle.